


Fading Light

by Akaroku



Category: Radiata Stories
Genre: Brotherly Love, Gen, racism between made up fantasy races
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:41:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23587822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akaroku/pseuds/Akaroku
Summary: After an argument, Nogueria doesn't speak to his brother for almost a week. It takes Gil's help to make him realize there may have been a hidden meaning behind Zane's acting out.





	Fading Light

Nogueira let out a tired, yet relieved sigh as he tucked away the last of his personal belongings and latched the wicker travel chest shut. He dragged it over to the two identical looking chests by the doorway of his home, all ready to be loaded onto a goat drawn cart in the morning.

“Thank you for your help and company today Gil.” He glanced over to Gil, standing a respectful distance behind him and smiled gratefully.

“Of course my Lord.” He replied with a small nod. “Will you be needing company on your trip tomorrow as well?”

Nogueira thought for a moment. Traveling to the Nowem region by cart would definitely take longer than if he were to take it by wing. Still, he should be there before nightfall and he foresaw little in the way of potential complications.

“No thank you. It would be far too inconvenient for you and I feel you should stay here with Zane. He’ll be on his own as the leader starting tomorrow, and I think he’ll need your help far more than me.”

Gil simply nodded again, though the expression on his face gave away something more that he wanted to say.

“What are you thinking right now? Do you also wish to tell me that I’m making a mistake in leaving?” He tried to speak his words with some degree of casualness, but there was still an edge to his tone. Many of the other light elves had expressed such opinions about his leaving but Gil had so far projected an air of indifference to the situation. Though he felt it was more a matter of the poet biting his tongue than actually having a particularly progressive opinion on the matter.

Surprise flashed across Gil’s face before shifting to a look of uncertainty.

“The decision’s yours to make. Perhaps your guidance will steer them away from any...less civilized behavior they may be inclined to by nature.” Before Nogueira could finish his frustrated sigh and launch into his counter argument, Gil continued. “No, my concern is in fact with Lord Zane. Will you see him again before you leave?”

A complex mix of emotions swept through Nogueira. They had fallen into a massive argument not even a week ago, mostly due to Zane’s own resentment and prejudice towards the dark elves. Zane hadn’t spoken to him since and Nogueira had given up trying to seek him out rather quickly.

“It depends on if he decides to grow up and change his petty opinions.”

“You know that won’t happen so soon.”

“I don’t have the time or energy right now to deal with his tantrums. I still love my brother dearly, but I will not change my decisions simply because he demands it.” Nogueira turned away from Gil and flipped open one of the chests. He tried to make as if he were checking over all of his belongings, hoping that Gil would drop the matter and leave. Gil did not take the hint, or most likely he didn’t pay it any mind.

“If I may, can I put a slightly different perspective on things?” Nogueira remained silent, curious to hear what Gil had to say. “As your younger brother, Lord Zane has never experienced a life without you by his side. You are very much the sun with which his world revolves around and; his opinions aside, I feel what really upsets him is the thought of losing that light which has guided and nurtured him for so long.”

The dried woven reeds groaned in protest as Nogueira unintentionally tightened his grip around the edge of the container. The thought had never crossed his mind and he mentally kicked himself for it. Zane had always struggled to be forthright about what was upsetting him, unless what was upsetting him had to do with the humans of course.

“Please don’t be too hard on yourself over it.” Gil continued, as if reading his mind. “There’s a lot of stress on your shoulders as well and emotions are tricky things. You do not have to change your decision to appease him, but please don’t leave him with the thought that that light will be forever gone.”

\---

Thankfully it hadn’t taken too long to find Zane, despite the sun having almost fully set by this time. Nogueira found the younger light elf strolling along one of the foot worn paths just outside of the City of Flowers. He landed a few feet behind Zane, making just enough sound to alert him to his presence but not enough to startle him.

Zane turned from observing the freshly opened evening blooms and immediately his face tightened into a look of hurt and anger. He turned away from Nogueira but remained standing in place.

“Zane, please. I’m sorry I had been so hard on you when we fought the other day. I had already been stressed out with everything else that was going on and failed to think that maybe there had also been other reasons as to why you were angry.”

“I’m angry because you’re leaving us to go live with those filthy half breeds!” Nogueira allowed his brother the moment to vent. “They’ve been perfectly fine in their own corner of the world up until now. Why do you feel the need to go interfere with them all of a sudden?”

“They’re a young culture Zane, they’ve barely been able to survive and they have no alliances with any other race. If anyone were to decide to attack them, they would be wiped out.”

“Okay fine, so you go and help them build up a better society and then what? They ally with the humans and become greedy and arrogant just like their ethnic cousins? Draining life from everything they set their little fingers on?”

“You’re forgetting they’re also ethically related to us. This is why I’m going there. If everyone else turns their backs to them then they’ll be vulnerable to being manipulated by anyone who’s willing to acknowledge them. I’d rather go there myself to help them navigate making positive social connections with the other races.”

“Fine! Then go! Leave me and go to them!” Zane turned just long enough to swat an arm in his direction, as if he were an annoying mosquito. Though it was too dark for Nogueira to see any details in Zane’s face, there was an unmistakable shakiness to his voice.

“I get that this is difficult for you. I practically raised you. Taught you everything from how to fly, to how to lead an entire group of people. At this point there’s nothing left for me to guide you in and I’m going to put my time for now into guiding our other kin. That said, that doesn’t mean I’m gone forever. We can still write and I’ll try to make time to visit with you as often as I am able.”

The brothers were silent for a long while. Nogueira was almost ready to give up and accept that Zane wouldn’t ever speak to him until…

“I forgive you.” Zane’s choked, his body now trembling from his quiet sobs. “And I’m sorry I lashed out at you as I did...I realize I ruined what little time we had left together.”

Nogueria closed the distance between them, placing a hand on Zane’s shoulder and gently turning him around. The wet sheen of tears on his younger brother's cheeks caught his eye and without hesitating he moved to wipe them away. 

“I also forgive you.” He drew Zane in closer and allowed Zane to cling to his body as he quietly cried into his shoulder.

“I won’t be not gone forever. We will have plenty more chances to see each other again.” Nogueria reassured, gently stroking Zane’s back and blinking away the hot pinpricks of tears in his own eyes. He let out a shaky sigh and pulled Zane closer, not wanting to let go of him for the rest of the time they had left.


End file.
